Flat bottom or V hull?

January 19th, 2003, 05:05 AM

Hey all..been a casual fresh water fisherman using a small canoe for years...as I get older my fishing is increasing so I'm going to step up to a 12-14 foot boat..would love to hear opinions on flat bottom vs. V hull...thanx..Steve...fishing Bauneg Beg Lake in Sanford/North Berwick Maine

Howdy, SJBeker.Flat bottom boats are faster and can handle shallower water. They pound in any kind of chop.V bottoms are smoother riding in a chop or rough water.Semi-vee boats (a vee bow tapering to a flat bottom at the stern) are a compromise between the two.I recommend the semi-vee in a 12-14' aluminum skiff.Good luck.

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Ditto on what JB said however you do need to keep in mind the type of waters you will be fishing. Do you need a boat that goes extremely shallow or do you need more stability in rough conditions? A lot more than just our opinion on which boat is best needs to be considered when purchasing a fishing boat.

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I got a little 12' Lund -bottom that I sue when I'm fishing these refuge lakes that have no boat ramp and allow no gas motors. I hate the lack of stability when moving around the boat. It feels like it's ready to chuck me out with the fish. My Lund has the stability of a canoe, if that tells you anything. I never fished with a 12' Jon, but it couldn't be any worse than what I've had with the V. Any 12' boat would be the last place I'd want to be if the water was rough. JB's right about a flat-bottom beating the heck outta ya if there's any waves at all. My brother has a 20 Sea Ark, which is kind of a tapered V and my 17' Alumacraft rides like a Caddy compared to his. (he's got twice as much room as I do, though).In summary - 14' or shorter, I'd go with a Jon, 16' or bigger, a V.

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I have fished in a small semi-vee and it was very tippy when leaning to the side which was tough with the kids.I bought a 14' jon. Good stable platform, gets shallower a than anything works well for me. My wife likes the boat. I made a cart that lets me launch it by myself in most lakes without the use of the car or ramp. The lake I fish in mostly does not have a ramp. I put the boat on my cart, take it down the hill and launch it by myself. I take the boat out by myself too. I probably could make one for a vee Downside, Slaps on the choppy water (my son likes the slappy ride in the front). I wish I had higher sideboards it sits low in the water with my big butt in there.

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A couple more things wider is better unless you need narrow to make it through the trees in a swamp. Also whether you intend to launch at a ramp or not if you have the room to store it get a small trailer when you get the boat. It makes for easier loading and unloading regardless of using a ramp or not and when you want to go all you need to do is hook up not load the boat onto the car or truck. I even have one under my canoe although I still have to turn it over because I don't cover it and I don't want it filling with water but with a boat all you do is leave the plug out.

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Steve, coming from a canoe, you certainly know about tippy. There is a lot to be said for some brands and hull design though.I have used many small utility boats and have stepped out of a 12 foot Alumacraft into a 15 foot Mirrocraft. The Mirro, although 3 feet longer, had a narrower and more rounded hull like a cheaper canoe and it was very tippy. The smaller Alumacraft was much more stable and more forgiving in rougher water.There are very few true deep v hulls anymore. Most are semi v or modified v,. Then you get the v fronted jon boats like the smaller boats from tracker. And of course the square front jon boats.Bottom line, if your canoe could handle it, any of these will do. If you would like to have a bit more stability and room, go with a 14 foot. For maximum usable space the square front jon/skiff is the way to go.These 2 from Alumacraft are nice. Both the 12 and 14 are the same width and depth. You can use the specs on these to compare to what is available locally.http://www.alumacraft.com/utility/utility_T12V.htmlhttp://www.alumacraft.com/utility/utility_T14V.htmlWhats nice about this size boat is that a pair of oars or a small motor will get you around.If you want to be sure, ask the dealer for a test float.

Medford, WI

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these guys have pretty well covered everything but if you plan on building a deck/floor in the boat definately get a flat-bottom. if you think a v bottom is tipsy as it is, try puttin a flat floor acrossed the bottom. we put floors in my 12ft vbottom and that thing was worse than my little 10ft flatbottom.

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I have a 17.5 SEMI-V Sea Nymph and I wouldn't trade it for any other boat.JB said it right about a SEMI V. A friend of mine has a V and I don't really care for it. When I go fishing with him we take my boat if possible.